


Uppsala

by Brunhild



Category: Vikings (TV)
Genre: F/M, Gen, Vikings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-09
Updated: 2014-02-09
Packaged: 2018-01-11 16:42:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,008
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1175395
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Brunhild/pseuds/Brunhild
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The trip to Uppsala makes Athelstan realize what he is missing in his life. Now that he knows, what will he do about it?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Uppsala

**Author's Note:**

> This story is inspired by characters in the series "Vikings". This story does not follow the original story. In this story, Earl Haraldson is still alive but not in this story. Leif will not be sacrificed. I hated to see those characters die in Season 1. I do not own these characters.

Athelstan looked around as he approached the wooden building. So this was Uppsala, the place where the Vikings worshipped their gods. It was a strange place with many wooden statues and strange men walking around. One thing was certain, their gods were not like the Christian God at all. Ragnar had taken him around and had shown him various places at Uppsala. One interesting place he had shown him was the pen where the sacrifices were kept. Nine of each male creature including men was to be killed as a sacrifice to the heathen gods. Uppsala was a peculiar place indeed. Athelstan wondered how such a beautiful place could be used for such unholy purposes. Earl Haroldson had sent Ragnar Lothbrok with the Viking pilgrims to Uppsala. He did not go. Ragnar had been surprised by this but had agreed to the earl's request. Every since the summer raids, something had been different about the earl. Ragnar had sensed this too. The earl had sent Siggy and Thyri to Uppsala without him. Ragnar questioned Siggy about this and she had told Ragnar that the earl had wanted to stay behind and protect the village. Maybe so, but Ragnar knew this wasn't the reason he stayed behind and Siggy and Earl Haroldson knew this too, but the real reason wasn't spoken out loud or even speculated on. All Ragnar knew was that he was in charge and he loved it.

Darkness soon enveloped the vast encampment and things started getting strange fast. Athelstan walked around in the darkness to different sites. People were doing things he never imagined. People were engaged in orgies and other vile acts that he found repulsive. Arne, Leif and Torstein were running in to the woods with three girls that were not from their village. Helga and Floki were lying in the grass and staring straight into the sky. What was wrong with them? This was the first time that Athelstan had ever seen Floki motionless since he met the rather eccentric ship builder. He continued to walk until he came to a giant tent. He stopped in front of it. He saw Rollo. Rollo was being lead into the tent by two village girls. Before entering the tent, Rollo gave him a horn of mead and bowl of brown mushrooms. "Here priest, you need some of these." The two girls with Rollo laughed as the three of them entered the tent hand in hand. Athelstan, curious, started eating the mushrooms. The more he ate, the stranger he felt. His heart rate increased and he began to sweat. He continued to walk out into the night. Every sound he heard was amplified. He started laughing hysterically and began to feel hot and dizzy. He feel forward and he was grabbed by the arm. " Are you alright priest?" asked a loud, disembodied voice.  
"Yes, yes, thank you." answered Athelstan as he started laughing again.  
"You are not alright, let's get you over here" said Thyri as she lead him to a small shelter in a remote area of the camp. Athelstan followed Thryi and lay down on the floor. He settled down and went to sleep.

He woke up several hours later.  
"What happened?"  
"You ate those mushrooms'' replied Thyri as she handed him a drink of water.  
"I won't be doing that again" Athelstan laughed as he drank all of the water and put the cup aside.  
"I was surprised that you came with us at all" said Thyri. "I mean since you are a Christian and you do not worship our gods."  
"Ragnar insisted that I come."  
"Father did not take slaves with him here"  
"You have been here before?"  
"Yes, but I was a small girl the last time I came here."  
"What exactly do they do here?" asked Athelstan.  
"We come here nine years to pay tribute to our gods, ask their blessings, make sacrifices, and then go back home. We also like to have fun while we are here too" said Thyri as she smiled at Athelstan.  
"I see a lot of people having fun" said Athelstan. Thyri laughed and asked the priest what he had done since he had been there.  
" I have walked around a lot and asked questions about things that I did not understand." he replied. "Can I ask you something, why didn't your father bring everyone here? Why did he ask Ragnar to bring everyone here?"  
"Father has been different lately. He has had a hard time since the deaths of my two younger brothers. Their deaths have troubled him much. After the deaths of Gunner and Oleson, father distanced himself from mother and I. Sometimes mother is the same way and it is like I am living alone at The Great Hall. If it wasn't for the slaves, I suppose I would be alone. It has really been hard for us these past three years. Next month will be four years since this happened. I dread this time of year because it is just so sad."  
"I can imagine" said Athelstan as he looked at Thyri. This was the first time that Athelstan had ever really noticed Thyri or any other woman for that matter. For the first time, Athelstan noticed Thyri's skin tone, the color of her hair, her eye color and the way she smelled. Her voice was soft and gentle, not authoritarian like Lagertha's voice. Thyri noticed Athelstan looking at her. Uncomfortable with the silence, she spoke. "What about you priest, where do you come from?  
"I am from Scotland and I was a priest in Ireland before I went to England."  
"Where is your family priest?"  
"They died when I was a small child."  
"How did you become a priest?"  
"I became a priest after I was taken in by the brothers at the monastery. They raised me after I was sent there when my family died. I took the vows of a priest a few years ago."  
"What do priest do?"  
"Priest study and pray at the monastery. We also take God's message to different parts of the world"  
'Why do Christians worship one god, don't you like our gods?"  
"Thyri, there is but one true God and I worship him, we are taught that all other gods are false gods and we cannot worship them." Thyri appeared shocked by Athelstan's explanation of his belief system but she was not angered by it. Everyone should believe the way he or she chooses to believe at least she thought so.

 

"Well how do you feel about Kattegat then?"  
"I like Kattegat, it is not bad there, I have been to worse places. Have you lived in Kattegat your whole life?"  
"Yes, I was born there. My mother Siggy is from a neighboring village,my father was born in Kattegat. My father met my mother after a battle in Sweden. She had been a shield maiden in that battle. My father was impressed with her fighting skills. He introduced himself to her and they found out they were from neighboring villages. When mother and father came back to Kattegat, my father asked for my mother's hand in marriage. Her mother and father were not certain about the marriage since my mother was quite young and my father had been married before."  
"Lady Siggy was not the earl's first wife?"  
"No, my father was married to a woman from Kattegat the first time, they had a child together. A plague came to Kattegat, father's first wife and daughter died. My father was sick too but he recovered."  
"How long has your father been the Earl in Kattegat? How did he become earl?"  
"My father has been earl about twenty years. He became the earl after his uncle died with no male heirs." Athelstan stared at Thyri as she spoke. She continued to talk about Kattegat, her parents and her dreams for the future. She stops to notice Athelstan staring out into the night as an intoxicated, naked couple strolled by.  
"If this is such a holy place, why are people doing such sinful things here? I have never seen such unholy acts take place on sacred ground."  
"This is Uppsala. People come here to worship the gods in their own way. People do what they want here. Don't Christians have places that they go to and celebrate the Christian God?"  
"Yes, but we don't do those things out there that people are doing."  
"Things like what priest?"  
"Like, like, like you know--have sex everywhere," Athelstan answered in a low voice.  
"What is wrong with that?" asked Thyri.  
"Christians don't have sex in public to celebrate God" said Athelstan shaking his head.  
"Where do you Christians have sex Athelstan?  
"Me, I can't ever have sex? Thyri is surprised by this revelation. "Why can't you--?"  
"I can't have sex because I am a priest. I took vows never to touch a woman in that way. I gave myself to God. I am celibate."  
"You can never be married, or have children either?"  
"No Thyri, priest cannot do those things." Thyri stared in disbelief at Athelstan. Athelstan stared at Thyri. "Do you ever think about, you know..."  
"Yes, Thryi, I do."  
"Would you ever act on those thoughts priest?" Before he got a chance to answer, Thyri reached over kissed Athelstan on the lips. Much to his surprise he didn't resist. Athelstan returned Thyri's kiss in a most ardent fashion. Just when he was about to savor the sweetness of this kiss, Rollo and Ragnar quietly walked over to the small hut.  
"Look at this Ragnar, it looks like your priest is about to become a man tonight," said Rollo as he laughed at the embarrassed couple. Ragnar smirked, " Yes, I see, what were you doing priest?"  
"I, well, I was just talking to Thyri..."  
"Yeah, right priest," snapped Rollo. "Come back to the main area now Thryi, your mother is looking for you, go and let her know your are alright. As a matter of fact, I am walking back up that way, I will walk with you" said Rollo as he proceeded to escort an embarrassed Thryi back. Thyri looked back at Athelstan as she walked away and smiled. Rollo looked back at Athelstan and gave him a rather odd look. Soon Thyri and Rollo were out of sight.

After Thyri and Rollo were out of sight, Ragnar started laughing like a mad man. "Priest what were you and Thyri doing, did you...?"  
"No Ragnar, no, nothing like that happened!"  
"What do you Christians call things like what just happened, you call it a sine, seen, sing..."  
"Sin, and no Ragnar, I didn't do that with her, I swear!"  
Yes, Athelstan, but you kissed her, did you want to do more?"  
"No."  
"Don't lie Athelstan. Did you like it when she kissed you?"  
"Yes, I did Ragnar."  
"Why did you kissed her?"  
"I don't know, it just happened Ragnar."  
"Do you still consider yourself a priest? teased Ragnar.  
"Of course I still consider myself a priest" said Athelstan less sure of himself than he had ever been.  
"What ever you say priest. Come on we have to get back and get settled in for the night. Gyda and Lagertha have been asking about where you were. Don't worry, I won't tell them where I found you."  
"Thank you Ragnar."  
"I said I wouldn't tell, that doesn't mean Rollo won't say anything." Athelstan looked at Ragnar with some apprehension at the mention of Rollo.  
"My own little priest, about to commit sin. You had better be glad that Earl Haroldson was not here, by now you would have been just a memory. That was his daughter you just kissed." Athelstan thought about the situation he had almost surrendered to. He would have to be more careful in the future.

Athelstan made preparations to go to sleep that night. He said his prayers as he always did. But tonight was different. Tonight he dreamed. And in his dreams, he was with Thryi.

{THE END}


End file.
